Electric brake mechanism.



No. 667,729. Patented Feb. l2, 190i. F. C. NE'W'ELL.

ELECTRIC BRAKE MECHANISM.

(Application filed Aug. 26, 1899.)

(No Model.)

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FRANK O. NE\VELL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE WESTING- HOUSEAIR BRAKE COMPANY, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

ELECTRIC BRAKE MECHANISM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 667,729, dated February12, 1901.

Application filed August 26, 1899- Serial No. 728,610- (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANK O. NEWELL, a citizen of the United States,residing in Ohicago, Cook county, Illinois, have invented a certain newand useful Improvement in Electric Brake Mechanism, of which thefollowing, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is aspecification.

My invention relates to electric brake devices which employ one or morewheel-brakes operated magnetically.

When a car-wheel is rendered magnetic by any means, it tends to attractand pick up all the small particles of iron or steel near the rails. Ihave found in practice that when in the operation of an electric brake amagnetized wheel-shoe is applied to a car-wheel the wheel may becomemagnetized sufficiently to attract and accumulate such a quantity ofparticles of iron and steel as to produce a very objectionable action ofthe electric current when the motor-current is turned on to propel thecar. I find that the small particles which collect upon the tread of thewheel interfere with the contact between the wheel and the rail andcause such an amount of sparking as to melt or fuse the iron particlesto the wheel. In order to overcome this difficulty, I provide meansfor'magneticallyinsu lating the wheels or shoes from the magnetizedparts of the brake apparatus, and in the construction shown I provide abrass thrustrod connection in place of an iron one, such as has beenheretofore employed.

The first of the objects of my present invention, therefore, maybe saidto be the magnetic insulation or isolation of the wheel or its shoe fromthe magnetized parts of the brake apparatus for the purpose of preventing the difficulty described and also the combination, with a magneticrail-shoe, of a wheel-shoe, connections between them whereby therail-shoe when applied will set the wheel-shoe through the inertia ofthe car, and means whereby the wheel-shoe is protected from or kept outof the magnetic circuit formed between the rail-shoe and the rails. As apreferred means for accomplishing this object, as stated, I constructthe connections between the magnetic rail-shoe and the wheel-shoe partlyof a metal which will not be subject to the action of the magnet, brassbeing perhaps the most suitable.

Another of the objects of my presentinvention is the provision of animproved method of suspending the rail-shoe whereby greater freedom ofmovement of the same over uneven places in the track, such as frogs andswitches, and greater lateral movement in passing around sharp curves isobtained.

Another object of myinvention is the simplification and improvement ofthe lever and thrust-rod connections between the rail-shoe and thewheel-shoes and between the wheelshoes themselves.

A further object of my invention relates to the provision of a rodconnection between the brake-shoe levers formed with projections at eachof its ends, whereby the strain thereof is transmitted directly toanother Wheel-shoe, which thus forms the point of ultimate resistance,and no rigid bracket-iron attached to the truck is required.

The above, as well as such other objects as may hereinafter appear, Iattain by means of a construction which I have illustrated in preferredform in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows a verticalsection through a car-truck to which my improved brake mechanism hasbeen applied, and Fig. 2 shows a plan view of the same.

Adjacent to the rail 1 and suspended between the wheels 2 I provide arail-shoe 3, operating magnetically, the coil of the magnet being withinthe part marked 4, and the poles 5 and 6 at the opposite ends of thecoil projecting downwardly toward the rail, which forms the keeperforthe magnet when the brake is set. At 7 and 8 I provide a couple ofeyes or fastening-lugs, in which are secured some tensionsuspension-springs 9 9, the upper ends of which are supported byadjustable eyes 10, carried in fixed brackets 11, secured to the truck.To each end of the railshoe 3 I connect an extensible or telescopicthrust-rod composed of two parts 12 and 13, the outer end of the part 13bearing against the lever 14, which presses the shoe 15 against thewheel.

Between the upper ends of the levers 14 I have provided a connecting-rod16, having Ice at each of its ends a downwardly-projecting extension orarm 17, formed rigid with the rod and adapted to transmit the strain ofthe rod in either direction against the center of the brakeshoe. Thus ifthe car be moving toward the left and the brake be applied the rail-shoe3, being drawn down upon the rail, will react, because of the inertia ofthe car upon the lever let, to press the shoe 15 against its wheel, andthe rod 16 will transmit the strain of the upper end of the lever 14,through the projection 17, against the wheel-shoe at 18, the point ofultimate resistance being thus brought squarely against the otherbrakeshoe and any necessity for fixed or what is known as deadlever-supports or connections being avoided.

The part 13 of the thrust-rod connection between the rail-shoe and thewheel-shoe is made tubular or hollow, and the part 12 enters therein inthe manner shown by the dotted lines. One or the other, or both, ofthese parts, preferably the tubular part, I make of brass or some othernon-magnetic metal, in order that when the current is turned on themagnet 4, the shoes 15, and the wheels will not form a part of themagnetic circuit with the rail. It is probable that the use of a lever 11, made of brass, or a shoe-head of the same metal, would accomplish thesame results, and such constructions I desire to be understood asequivalents and clearly within the scope of my present invention.

The levers let are extended downwardly and connected by rods 19 withhand-brake shafts 20 at both ends of the car, whereby is provided aconvenient means for manually operating both wheel-shoes from either endof the car without interference with the power actuation of the brake,and whereby also, if desired, the pressure on the wheel-shoe when thebrake is set may be manually increased.

By the arrangement of the springs 9 and the employment. of atension-spring alone in stead of the compression-spring with ahangerrod, which I have shown in a prior patent, (reissue No. 11,786,issued November 7, 1899, original No. 616,956,) I not only simplify theconstruction, but I am enabled to get a much greater freedom of motionof the rail-shoe 3, and hence a much more satisfactory operation of thebrake than is possible with such prior construction. The telescopicthrustrod between the rail-shoe and the wheel-shoe affords a sufficientguide or staying support to keep-the rail-shoe in proper position, whilethe rail-shoe is at the same time capable of the utmost freedom ofmotion vertically, transversely, and longitudinally to the limit of themovement permitted by the thrust-rod connections. Thus, for example, ingoing around a curve, even if the rail-shoe hangs several inches to oneside of the rail, the moment current is applied it will jump over andengage the rail without any interference from its supporting devices.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an electric brake apparatus, a magnetic rail-shoe, a wheel-shoeand connections whereby the wheel-shoe is applied by the longitudinalmovement of the rail-shoe, part of said connections being formed ofnon-magnetic material.

2. In an electric brake apparatus, a magnetic rail-shoe, wheel-shoesadapted to be applied by the longitudinal movement of the rail-shoe andconnections of non-magnetic material between the rail-shoe and thewheelshoes.

3. In an electric brake apparatus, a magnetic rail-shoe suspended by ayielding connection and adapted to move freely in a transversedirection, and a wheel-shoe adapted to be operated by the movement ofthe rail-shoe.

a. In an electric brake apparatus, a magnetic rail-shoe suspendeddirectly by a tensionspring and adapted to move freely in a directiontransverse to the track.

5. In an electric brake apparatus, a magnetic rail-shoe suspended bytension-springs and adapted to move freely transversely to the track,and a wheel-shoe adapted to be operated by the movement of therail-shoe.

6. In an electric brake apparatus, a magnetic rail-shoe suspended bysprings and being free to move in a transverse direction, a wheel-shoeand means to operate the wheelshoe by the movement of the rail-shoe.

7. In an electric brake apparatus, a magnetic rail-shoe suspended bysprings and being free to move in a transverse direction, a wheel-shoeand an extensible thrust-rod connection between the rail-shoe and thewheelshoe.

8. In a car-brake apparatus, the combination, with a rail-shoe and twowheel-shoes adapted to be operated by the movement of the rail-shoe, ofmeans for manually operating both wheel-shoes from either end of the carindependently of the movement of the rail-shoe.

9. In a car-brake apparatus, the combination, with a railshoe and twowheel-shoes adapted to be operated by the movement of the rail-shoe, ofman ually-operatcd means for increasing the pressure of the wheel-shoeson the wheels.

10. In a car-brake apparatus, two wheelshoes, levers for thewheel-shoes, a connection between the levers, means for operating eitherof the levers by hand and a connection for transmitting pressure fromone lever directly to the other wheel-shoe.

11. In a car-brake apparatus, the combination, of a rail-shoe, twowheel-shoes, lever connections by which either wheel-shoe may beoperated by the rail-shoe, and a connection for transmitting pressurefrom one lever directly to the other wheel-shoe.

12. A brake having a rail-shoe, a wheelshoe at each end of saidrail-shoe, a lever upon each Wheel-shoe, a connecting-rod between saidlevers for transmitting the braking force from one of said wheel-shoesto the other, and connections between said rail-shoe and said leverswhereby the application of the railshoe actuates the levers to set theWheelshoes, and projections at each end of said connecting rod wherebythe strain thereof is transmitted directly to theother wheel-shoe. 16

FRANK O. NEWELL.

l/Vitnessesz PAUL CARPENTER, PAUL SYNNESTVEDT.

